A wide variety of aesthetic treatment handpieces has been disclosed in the prior art. Electromagnetic waves such as light, radio frequency (RF) and microwaves are known energy sources in the prior art for treating human skin. Non-electromagnetic energy sources such as ultrasound, shockwaves and cryogenic sources are also common in the aesthetic industry in general and more particularly in the treatment of skin. Whatever the technology utilized, most of these systems have in common some sort of applicator device which applies the particular technology to the human skin.
In fact, combinations of multiple energy sources are known and incorporated into in a single handpiece, and may comprise the same type of energy or a combination of different energy types. These combinations may include a plurality of small energy sources configured to deliver a patterned fractional treatment effect or may be a smaller number of larger energy sources configured to deliver either a more focused and/or bulk treatment of large skin surfaces. Energy may be delivered or applied to different skin organs invasively or non-invasively. In some cases, the handpiece may itself incorporate the mechanism to generate the applied energy while in other cases the handpiece may only deliver and couple energy from a source which is external to the handpiece.
Aesthetic and skin treatments are applied to different body areas. Some body areas are large, uniform, relatively flat and easy to access, like the abdominal area or the calf, while others are not. Small treatment areas like the face may pose a challenge due to the basic size and geometry of the treatment handpiece. Challenges of accessibility to the skin surface may result in less than desired treatment efficiency. Serving the need to treat different types of body areas has been often met in currently available devices in the industry by providing a single main unit to which multiple and different handpieces may be connected. This appears to be a major element in some companies' business model which force their customers to acquire multiple handpieces to accomplish multiple tasks. Alternatively, some companies provide handpieces that have a fixed structure of energy sources and geometry while having a modular energy coupling element which may better access problematic areas. Since treatment efficiency is highly dependent on the energy distribution within the skin and on the energy interaction with different skin organs, treatment handpieces are optimized for their intended uses and, as such, have very limited flexibility or modularity.
Thus, what is needed in the industry are handpiece structures which obviate most if not all of the shortcomings of the presently available devices. It is the subject of the present invention to teach an alternative approaches and treatment handpiece structures.